Xander's Love

Chapter ten

We join everyone else in the kitchen for lunch. Instead of getting looks of pity, I get smiles and winks. Not gonna lie, it feels good.

Theo comes down the stairs with a straight face. That's odd. He's always giddy and saying hi to everyone.
Oh damn. Was he upstairs while Xander and I had sex? He walks over to Eva and she serves him a plate of fish and vegetables. Theo sits on the farthest corner of the table. I turn to Xander and frown. He just looks at me and shrugs then continues eating.

"I was thinking we could have a fancy dinner with everyone together" says Eva. She's now caught everyone's attention.
"We haven't sat together as a family in a long time" her face drops.
"I think that's a great idea" Julian squeezes her hand. She looks up and smiles at him but somehow she looks sad.
"What do you think Fabio?" Julian asks.
"How about tonight?" He wipes his mouth and smiles. Eva grins.
"Okay I'll go to town and make a wonderful dinner for us. Alice will you join me?" I look up and meet her eyes and I can't say no even if I didn't want to be separated from Xander right now.
I nod and relief washes over her.
"Everyone has to put on their best clothes. Ruby and Olivia can you pull out our best tablecloth and pull out the China?" Ruby nods.
"Boys please clean the kitchen so I can come back to cook" the boys don't look too eager about their task but agree.
"Isabella can you head to the farmers market that's out past the city? They have the freshest vegetables. Oo! Can you get some roses? Take Liam with you! I'll make a list for you right now" Eva is really excited and no one wants to be the one to take that away.

"So what's for dinner?" I ask Eva as we arrive to town.
"To start off, potato soup with a salad, for the entree steak with mushrooms with sautéed green beans. For dessert a lemon bundt cake" Wow... She has it all figured out. I grab a cart and follow Eva around the supermarket as she checks off item after item on her list.

"Eva what were you and Xander talking about that one day outside?" Eva frowns at me as she drives to the house.
"You saw that huh?" I nod.
"It was about Beth" it feels like someone has a grip around my heart after hearing her name again.
"We all knew that Xander could never really be with you because of Beth. He was never the same after s..she..." Eva can't even finish the sentence before her eyes water. I put a reassuring hand on her thigh. She smiles.
"None of us were the same" she sniffles.
"That's why I wanted to make a family dinner, we haven't all sat together at once and just had a good time" now I understood why Eva was so sad when she brought up the idea. Xander wasn't the only one that loved Beth dearly.

"What am I going to wear?" I think to myself as I look into my wardrobe. I don't exactly have a fancy dinner dress. A knock pulls me from my thoughts. It's Ruby. The last person I expected to see. We weren't exactly the best of friends but we never had a problem with one another.
"I thought maybe you didn't have a dress...so I brought one for you from my closet" she smiles and from behind her back she reveals a dark blue long sleeve bodycon dress. The back is open but has silver material that connect to the back of the neck down to the end of the open area. It is so pretty. I hug Ruby and I know I shock her but she hugs me back and giggles.
"Thank you!" I say taking the dress from her hands.
"And matching shoes?" She grins. Ruby shows me silver stilettos with a buckle around the ankle.

I curl my hair then pin it up into an elegant messy bun to show off the back. I apply a good amount of makeup and put on the heels. I can already hear chatter down the stairs. I head down the stairs and Liam is the first to spot me. He clears his throat and stands up, causing everyone else to look at me as I walk down the stairs. Xander's eyes are the only ones I am looking at. He is smiling and swallows hard as I came up next to him. He looks extremely handsome. He's wearing black slacks and a matching coat with a white shirt and a dark blue tie that just happens to match me. Ruby. Xander pulls the chair open for me and I sit down. All the guys then take their seats. I just happen to be the last one to be seated. I look over to Ruby and she smiles at me as Freddie talks to her. The tablecloth is a dark red and in the middle a white lace cloth that runs through the middle. There are three glass vases that have white roses, they are spread evenly along the table. Each of us has a large plate,a small plate that are obviously China, then slim glasses with silverware and a cloth napkin.

Everyone laughs and talks, Fabio makes the best jokes in my opinion. Under the table Xander holds my hand and rubs his thumb against the back of my hand. The dinner is absolutely delicious.
"This cake is to die for!" Says Caleb.
"Alice made it" Eva smiles. I was never good at cooking but baking was always my area of expertise.
"Thank you Alice!" Caleb laughs.
"Good thing we are already dead" laughs Liam. We all join in the laughter.
"I'd like to make a toast" Fabio stands up.
"To our wonderful chef, Eva. And to the newest member of our family, Alice" I blush as eyes turn to me. We raised our glasses in unison and drink our champagne.
"Slow down on the champagne" Freddie laughs at Theo who is serving himself for the 4th time. His eyes begin to droop, definitely tipsy. Xander kisses my cheek, many catch the gesture and grin. Xander never shows this type of affection in front of anyone. Theo looks disgusted by the gesture and wipes his mouth.
"Excuse me" he says and gets up. What the hell is his problem?! Theo walks out to the porch.
"I'll be right back" I whisper in Xander's ear. He nods and I kiss him on the lips before getting up and follow Theo outside.
"Hey!" I yell. Theo is walking away from the house. He turns around and I have to remove my heels and walk in the snow to catch up with him.
"What the fuck is your problem?! Do you hate that Xander and I are together?!" Theo looks furious and runs an angered hand through his hair.
"You don't know him!!" He yells back.
"I may not completely know him but he's making up for his mistakes!" Theo scoffs. Fucking asshole!
"Do you have a problem with that?!" I am so angry at him for his immature attitude lately. He walks over to me and before I can yell more his lips land on mine. I push him off.
"What the fuck Theo?!"
"I like you, Alice! Okay?! Now you know!" Fuck. Didn't expect that one.
"I'm sorry Theo... I..I..."
"Yeah I know! You like him!" He frowns. I didn't want to tell him that I actually loved Xander.
"I can't see you two together. It's too much for me." He drops his head.
"I just can't...."
"Are you going to leave?" I plead.
"What other choice do I have?" It wasn't fair to Theo to stay here and see me with Xander.
"I guess you're right" I sigh.
"I'm leaving tomorrow" he says. I look up and he can't even look me in the eye.
"I never meant to hurt you, Theo"
"I know.....I just think you're too good for Xander"
"I am" he looks up at me and seems dumbfounded.
"Then why are you with him?"
"Because.... I..." His eyes widen. Theo knows exactly what I was going to say.
"It's because you love him" I nod.

It's because I love him.